


Can’t Stop Me

by autumn_friend



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Gambling, Kakegurui AU, Multi, and they were ROOMMATES, i guess, oh my god they were roommates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:42:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26192125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/autumn_friend/pseuds/autumn_friend
Summary: Living alone is a breeze for Tetsuya. That is, until Teikō High decides to make boarding compulsory! And unfortunately for him, Tetsuya got assigned Haizaki Shōgo as his roommate.Surprisingly, they get along. Much to the surprise of Haizaki’s teammates. What’s so special about the blunt kid that even Haizaki likes him?Well, maybe they’ll find out when Haizaki convinces him to join the basketball team.
Relationships: Generation of Miracles/Kuroko Tetsuya, Haizaki Shougo/Kuroko Tetsuya, Kagami Taiga/Kuroko Tetsuya, Kuroko Tetsuya/Ogiwara Shigehiro
Comments: 10
Kudos: 148





	1. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Disclaimer: Characters belong to Tadatoshi Fujimaki, I’m just playing with them._
> 
> Inspired by Kakegurui I guess
> 
> I saw the trailer on YouTube and decided, hey! I can make a fic outta that!  
> So I did
> 
> Well, enjoy  
> :)

Surviving Teikō High is a challenge few succeed in. Winning poker games, withstanding bullying, earning credit, and maintaining a stable mental status throughout? That’s hard to do. Not for the weak of mind. Thankfully, I’ve got it down to a fine art by now. Find some unsuspecting soul, challenge them to a game, crush them. Claim the credit. Then disappear back into oblivion.

Really though, I wonder who came up with this idea. Who thought that making high schoolers gamble for social status and credit was a good idea? There are so many things wrong with that, I couldn’t name them if I had a week.

Ah well. I guess everyone here has to be at least a little crazy to even apply.

—————————————

My name is Kuroko Tetsuya, I’m 14, and right now, I’m scared for my life.

A knife to my throat, a wall to my back. It’s not even a particularly sharp knife, but it’s pressing hard enough that I can already feel blood welling up from the cut. The rough edges of the bricks press into my lower back uncomfortably. This isn’t something I know. People never get close enough to me to actually be a threat. I’m not sure how to deal with this. I don’t even know him well, I only played one game. Never thought he’d try and maim me for my win.

Granted, I can fight, and well, but that doesn’t mean I want to, or that I can retaliate before he cuts my throat open. My eyes search his face, looking for anything I can use to exploit. He looks expectant, like he’s waiting for something. Wonder what. Maybe a reaction? My poker face is perfect, but sometimes my utter lack of expression even in daily life does insult people. Yeah, probably a reaction.

I let my eyes widen a fraction as he presses the knife harder. It actually does hurts a little, so it isn’t just acting.

He sneers, an ugly, conceited thing. Yup, he was definitely looking for a reaction. His grip on the knife loosens a little, and it stops pressing quite so hard. He got what he wanted. And now he’s deemed me to be a non-threat.

What a miscalculation on his part. I lift my leg, and I kick him right between his. His face contorts in pain and shock. His legs go weak, and he stumbles backwards. He looks utterly agonised. Serves him right, I suppose.

I grab the knife handle and pull it from his fingers, then push him away with a hand on his chest. He’s unfairly tall. Why can’t I be that tall? Hmph. _Unfair._

He seems to have recovered a little by now, lifting his arm weakly to try and punch me. I pull a UNO reverse card though, and punch him instead. Right in the face. That’s gonna hurt later. I take a step to the right before darting away, keeping an eye on him the entire time. My footsteps are quiet, I don’t think he even noticed I was gone. Hurting people doesn’t interest me. He doesn’t try to stop me, too preoccupied with clutching his bloody nose. Probably broken.

What a troublesome night.

I head back home, leaving the guy standing there on the sidewalk clutching his nose and crotch in agony. The streets are darkly lit. My footsteps, quiet as they are, nonetheless echo in the silence. Turning the key in the lock, I open the front door. My house will always be some sort of sanctuary from the insanity that is the school day. I flick the kitchen light on with a sharp click. Warm light bathes the room. First things first. I carefully wash the small cut on my neck, before dressing it. I’ll wear a choker or something tomorrow to hide it. I’m a little hungry now, so I grab an apple from the fridge and sit down to eat.

Homework time. _Y_ a _y_.

Social status may be earned by gambling, but I don’t really care about that. I have one friend, and he doesn’t even go to the same school. I haven’t bothered to make any others. Nor am I aiming for an authority position. The only time I actually gamble is when I need credit. This school has a... _unique_ system. Credit can be earned from winning games, and it can be used to buy food or privileges. The more credit someone has saved, the higher the reward for beating them. And the higher the reward, the bigger the target on their back is. Which is why I only ever play as many games as I need to in order to have enough credit. I don’t want people challenging me so they can claim a bigger reward. It’s safer to only have as much as I need for the essentials. Like milkshakes.

The cafeteria has excellent vanilla milkshakes. I can use either money or credit to buy them. I prefer credit, since it’s not hard to get, and I have more money for other stuff. But most of the time, gambling is just a pastime to me, something to spice up my school days. I’m good at it though, so it doesn’t take up much time. I can focus on my school work. I want to graduate with good marks, to get a good job and live comfortably. Maybe I’ll need more than one job. In _this_ economy? Probably.

And sadly, good marks mean homework. I settle in.

An hour later, all my homework completed, I get up. I feel restless though. I haven’t done much exercise all day, so I guess I must have excess energy to burn off. Well, there’s plenty of time until the sun sets. May as well take the chance to play some basketball when I have the time. It’s been a while since I last played street ball. There’ll probably be a game on right now, some it’s still early.

Playing basketball is fun, familiar. As I steal the ball from some poor unfortunate soul, I can’t help but realise just how much I’ve missed this. The burning of my muscles as I play to the best of my abilities, the thrill of seeing a new techniques to adopt, the quick smiles exchanged between players who don’t even know each other’s name. I really should do this more. Maybe I’ll join the basketball club at school. I’ve been meaning to check it out for a while.

The sun is setting as I get ready to head back home. I say my goodbyes to all the other people, even though I don’t know half of them. I really love this community. It’s so nice to be able to meet new people and play together without any pressure or hate. Pity it’s not like this in real life. Or school for that matter. I slip out of the courts, my footsteps not making a sound. Breaking into a jog (it’s not safe to be out too late, even in this neighbourhood), I can’t help but notice the colour of the sky. It looks like it’s on fire. The clouds burn in vibrant shades of colour, their gradient ranging from golden yellow to pale pink. I reach home with zero complications, and unlock the door with practiced ease. Inside, it’s warmer than the cool crisp night air. I eat dinner, read my latest book, and go to bed. The evening is all perfectly normal, the standard fare.

Little did I know that soon my life would be more eventful than I ever imagined.

—————————————

“Hey, did you hear the news? I can’t believe it!”

“Me either. Guess this’ll be trippy to adjust to, huh.”

“It’s insane! Literally what possible reason could they have to make such an extreme decision? And on the behalf of all the students! No consultation at all!”

“This _sucks_ dude. I _like_ living at home.“

The whispers surround me as I walk in the school gates. What is everyone talking about? I tune into the words of the group nearest to me, a group of five who look intently invested in discussing something. Hope it’s whatever is making everyone so shellshocked.

“Seriously though. Why did anyone ever think this was a good idea?” The girl speaking has a lollipop stick hanging out the left side of her mouth, and neatly braided brown hair. Her hand is intertwined with the hand of the girl next to her. They’re probably dating. Which is sweet and all, but also not what I want to know about. Luckily, it seems they _are_ discussing whatever the controversial current event is.

“Yeah, it’s crazy. Still, at least you and I will get to spend more time together.” The other girl smiles at her softly. The atmosphere around them turns intimate.

“Yeah.” The first girl returns the smile shyly. She stands on her toes, to place a quick kiss on the other girl’s cheek. Yup. They’re definitely dating.

“Hey! What about us? Don’t you wanna spend time with your best friends too?” The boy has black hair, but it has a dyed blond streak in it, on his right side. His bag is cool. There’s a picture of a cat on it.

“Of course we do!” The second girl looks a little flustered, her short wavy auburn hair bouncing as she waved her free hand frantically. Her eyes are wide and genuine. Which is great, but considering that they are actively discussing whatever new development is afoot, they really aren’t saying much about it at all. Please, I’m dying to know. 

“Well yeah. He was just joking around.” The third girl pats the second on the head, an amused expression on her face. Her hair looks so fluffy, I can’t blame her. Third girl continues, her hand still resting on the second girl’s head. “Still, I can’t believe the school has the authority to make boarding compulsory. What about the kids who don’t want to leave home?”

Thank you, third girl. Finally, some information.

...

Wait, what?

“Yeah. I guess they want to get all the students in one place. Or maybe to trial the dorms? Who knows.” The other boy finally pipes up.

What? Dorms? Huh?

“Yeah. I guess we’ll be told more about it in home room.” Third girl, you are a valuable source of information, but you have left me with more questions than answers. Only thing I can do is wait, I guess. Homeroom cannot come fast enough.

I have plenty of time until school starts, so I head to the library. It’s right next to where my homeroom is, too. I reach the building the library is in. I enter and make my way to the library doors. The automatic glass door in front of me does not open.

Sadly, this is a regular occurrence. Sure, I get that I have a low presence, but at least electronic sensors should pick me up, right?

_Right?_

The door does not budge. It clearly does not care about what I think it should be able to sense or not.

A sigh escapes my mouth unbidden. I’ll have to do this the hard way then. Sometimes it notices me, but more often it doesn’t. Today is a not day, obviously. There is a button on the inside of the library wall, next to the door, for if a student gets trapped inside. I weave one of my hands into the crack between the door and the frame and lever the door upwards. My other hand slips inside to press the button. The doors open, granting me access. Finally.

I return all the borrowed books from last week. While looking for new ones, I see a couple of other students, but avoid them all. They wouldn’t notice me anyway, but why risk it? Attention isn’t the worst thing in the world, but only confident extroverts want to stick out in _this_ school. And I may be self-assured, but I sure as heck am not an extrovert.

A book on a display shelf catches my attention. It’s a dark scarlet colour, almost crimson. I pluck it off, flipping it open to a random page.

_As mentioned in a previous chapter, facial expressions are an integral part of gambling, for both parties. As a professional gambler, it is vital that you know how to control your facial expression so as not to give your opponent any indication of your future actions._

_However, it is also important that you know how to read the expressions of others, to glean insight into their moves. Both skills are important when it comes to the field of gambling. In this chapter, you will be given instruction on how to both read and conceal your expressions._

I close the book. Good thing I can already do both of those things well. Still, it seems like an interesting book, so I add it to my pile. I have enough books to last another week now. Checking my watch, I head to the check out area. The librarian is an old lady with kind eyes and endless wisdom. I like her. She’s always willing to talk about books with me. And she barely startles anymore when she notices me.

I smile at her, not widely like most people think smiles should be, but still undeniably a smile. She smiles back, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she reaches out to scan my books.

“Ooh, this is an interesting book. Good choice. Would you like to discuss it with me after you’ve read it?” People always underestimate the kindness of librarians. They guard all the knowledge contained within the walls of the library, protect it from any dangers, but that doesn’t mean that they’re fire-breathing dragons.

“Oh, of course.” I like talking to all the people who get taken for granted. It’s nice getting to know them, since they’re practically invisible to most people too. Most people don’t even know the names of most of the cleaners or workers in their schools. Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing, since a lot of people just wouldn’t have the time or opportunity to chat, or confidence. But still. They’re not noticed much.

She finishes checking my books out. “Oh, did you hear about the new school rules? The school is going to become a boarding school!”

Plus, they always hear about information before literally anyone else. I nod in reply to her. She leans over the desk conspiratorially. “I hear the school is planning to finally use those dorms on the far side of the school. They‘re certainly big enough for the entire school body. And luxurious too. Where do they get the money for so many high quality rooms? It’s a little ridiculous.”

Huh. So those dorms all the way over the edge of school are where they’re planning to put the students. Cool. She steeples her hands together, voice dropping to a whisper.

“From what they said, people could either choose who they want to be roomed with, or get one randomly assigned.”

That’s really good to know. I’ll probably get mine randomly appointed, since it’s not like I know anyone well enough to ask them to be my roommate without being weird or creepy. I smile a little at her again. It’s really nice of her to tell me all this. She smiles readily back. The books go into my bag, and I wave to her as I depart. It is returned cheerfully.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading my dudes  
> Hope u enjoyed it


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Disclaimer: Characters belong to Tadatoshi Fujimaki, I’m just playing with them._
> 
> Hi y’all!  
> I’m back ٩( ‘ω’ )و
> 
> Hope u enjoy :D

I’m halfway to homeroom before the bell goes. I can hear the way the chatter around me quiets for a moment before bursting into a bustle of moment. The students who are close by to their homerooms already just stay put, letting the chaos pass by. This is a dangerous time for me. If I’m not careful, I’ll be knocked over or bumped into. And I don’t think that bruises are a nice look on me.

Luckily for me, I’m a pro in avoiding people. I’ve had my entire life to practice, after all. Ducking under a stray arm, I find myself blocked from the door by a sea of people. There is no way I’d be able to fight my way through, not when the flow of people is exactly perpendicular to where I need to go. I end up flattening myself to the wall opposite the door to wait it all out, unashamedly using the purple-haired person next to me as a shield from all the people. Wow. He’s really tall. Why is everyone else so tall and I’m not? Spare some height for me please.

Eventually the rush dies down. Thankfully. I was starting to feel suffocated. I push off the wall, abandoning my safety shield. Thank you for your service, tall person. The classroom door is no longer obscured, so I head straight in.

The teacher isn’t here yet, but I take my seat anyway. We got to choose our seats at the start of the year, then it got marked down and made permanent. Third row, second from the window. The perfect seat to not be noticed. Not in the front where it’s too visible, not in the back where the teachers always pay more attention to the students, not by the window where students are watched to ensure they don’t daydream. Just in the middle, an average seat for an (aspiring to be) average student. Honestly, a surprising amount of strategy goes into being unnoticeable.

The teacher rushes in, just barely making it before the second bell rings. I’m expecting at least a few latecomer students, judging from the empty seats at the front of the classroom. Actually, even if all students were present, I don’t think all the seats would be filled.

If I’m not mistaken, one of the empty seats is from a boy who dropped out last week. From the rumours floating around, it was one of the elite that made him drop out. I think he got overconfident and challenged one of them. Really, I’m not sure why he thought it was a good idea, he got crushed. Utterly. He wanted popularity and credit, the other guy wanted him to stop bothering him. Forced voluntary expulsion. Poor him. He had no clue what he got into.

The teacher is calling role. I zoned out a little, but I snap to attention as he calls my name.

“Here.” I make sure my voice is loud and clear. His eyes skip over my chosen seat, which I am currently sitting in, before shrugging and marking me off on the role. I’m fairly certain he didn’t even hear me. Or see me. Sometimes low presence is a hassle, but that’s not to say it has no advantages. Like this. He didn’t know whether I was here or not, but he’s became so accustomed to what normally happens that now he just assumes I am. People typically think that I‘m not present, and then get startled when I make myself obvious. So now they just assume I’m here all the time so they don’t have to suffer through the humiliation and embarrassment over being wrong about my existence. It’s nice. I could skip and they’d never even know.

He’s nearly done with the role, just a few more moments and I’ll find out more about the proposed dorms. I wonder who I’ll end up rooming with. I don’t know anyone well enough to ask, so I’ll have to get an assigned roommate. I hope they’re nice. May luck of the draw serve me well.

“Now students, I have an announcement.” He waits for the students to quiet down, seeming far too exasperated for it only being the first period of the day. Not a great thing for a teacher to be, but honestly? Mood. “Due to a recent increase in the number of absences and missed days, the school board has made an executive decision to make boarding compulsory.”

There is an immediate outburst of noise from the class. The only ones not shouting at the teacher in shock or excitedly whispering to their friends are me and a random dude in the seat diagonally in front of me, next to the window, who’s fast asleep. He must be really tired to be sleeping so early in the day. Oh, there’s another one behind me. He has AirPods in, guess he didn’t hear the announcement.

“This is compulsory. Yes, the school does have the power to do this. No, there will not be a strict curfew or lights out time, but there will be strict consequences for bad behaviour or disturbing the other students. Yes, you are allowed to go home on weekends.” The teacher looks harried as he fields all the questions, raising his voice slightly to be heard over all the commotion.

There’s a folder on his desk, and he picks it up before rifling through it and extracting a pile of paper. Walking around the classroom, he drops one on each students desk. “This will explain it in more detail. Please read it carefully, then come to me if you have questions.”

The rest of homeroom is average, aside from the whispering which rises and falls like a heartbeat as my classmates read the sheet and then turn to discuss it with their friends. The school day goes by in a similar manner, seeming to revolve solely around the new arrangement. I walk my daily habits with no other interruption, and the last bell rings almost before I even realise it is the end of the day.

—————————————

It’s been such a placid day that I almost let down my guard, humming as I pass through the school gates. Sometimes I forget the nature of this school, but today, I am abruptly reminded, as I turn the corner.

The guy from yesterday looks... well, like he’d been punched in the face. Which he had. By me. He looks like a panda, with his silver hair and dark rings around both eyes. Getting hit in the nose does tend to do that. He’s leaning against a wall, glaring at some cowering kid with so much venom I’m honestly surprised. I wonder what happened. Did the kid win against him like I did? Or maybe he commented on the black eyes.

Whatever the situation is, I find myself moving closer for a better look. I might need to step in if the silver haired guy is bullying the other.

Snippets of the conversation reach my ears. I stop short. “...his hair is pale blue. I know you know him. What’s his name?” Silver guy looms in menacingly close to the other. Ah, dammit. He’s talking about me, isn’t he.

Our confrontation wasn’t a big deal, to me at least. All that happened was that I gambled with him for credit and won, he got angry and tried to beat me up in an alleyway, I punched him in the face and kicked him between the legs, then escaped. But it sounds like he’s holding a grudge (even though he attacked me). Looks like I’m gonna have to lie even lower now.

On the bright side, I don’t know the guy that is being threatened, so at least he can’t blow my cover. I’ve seen him with some other guy with pale blue hair and black roots, obviously dyed. Silver guy likely asked around and got the wrong person.

I follow them anyway, as silver guy is led to the friend. It’d be a little my fault if either of them got hurt, and I’d feel guilty, seeing as they haven’t done anything wrong. Thankfully nothing bad occurs, and the only thing getting punched was a wall. Ouch. Silver guy must have really tough knuckles.

Or not, seeing as they’re bleeding and I can hear his cursing from where I’m standing. I leave at this point. No reason to stick around, and I really should be getting home.

—————————————

The streets at night are really something. Faint light makes its way through the tree branches, dotting the pavement with dappled moonlight. Every so often there are streetlight, illuminating my surroundings with their gentle blue light. It feels eerie. There’s just something very otherworldly about being out at this time.

I’m glad when I finally make it home. The door unlocks, and I go straight to my room. I’m not hungry, and today is a Wednesday, which means I’m waiting on a call from my best friend. And, well, only friend. It’s been far too long since I last talked to Shige-kun. Even I get lonely sometimes.

I plop down on my bed, messing up my blankets so that I can burrito inside them and wrap them around my shoulders. I take my phone out of my bag and put it on the bed, then settle in to wait. Soon, I find myself dozing off, surrounded by warmth.

A little later, despite having been expecting it, I still flinch when my ringtone sounds in the silent apartment. It’s jarringly loud and out of place for this particular instance. I answer quickly. “Hi Shige-kun.”

“Tetsu-chan!” Enthusiastic as ever. His voice is familiar and filled with warmth, and I can feel myself relaxing into it. “How was your week?”

“Well. Most of it was pretty normal, but you won’t believe what the school has decided to do now.” Talking to Shige-kun is really nice. I’m not a huge talker, but he always knows just what to say so that I never want to stop talking with him. I finish telling him about the new dorms.

“What?! But, I won’t be able to see you as often if you’re always at school!” Shige-kun sounds so genuinely distressed. It’s kinda sweet actually. He goes to a different school, and doesn’t live anywhere near me, so we don’t see each other as much as we would like.

Thankfully, he’s not entirely correct. “No, I can come home on the weekends. We’d just need to meet up on Saturday or Sunday instead of any other days.” It is a pity though. I enjoy seeing him.

“Aww, but still.” There’s a little pause, and I can tell he’s pouting. “Well, I guess I just need to make the most of my time with you!” He brightens up. I can practically see his smile in my mind.

I let out a soft hum, amused despite myself. “Mhmm. So anyway, what’s been going on with you? Anything interesting?”

“Oh! I’ve been waiting to tell you this entire week! You know how I went to audition for the school play a couple of weeks ago? Well, guess what!” He sounds really excited, and I hear an almost giddy giggle.

“...You got the role?” Honestly, I’m not surprised at all. Shigehiro is such a bright, cheerful person that he could probably charm the socks off whoever had been chosen as director. I’m happy for him.

“Yup! I’m so happy! You’ll come see me right? I’ll buy tickets in advance!” His bed creaks, meaning he’s probably bouncing on it in anticipation. He’s always been such an expressive person. Perfect for drama, really.

I agree easily. I think it’d be interesting to watch him perform. “Sounds cool. I’ll come.” Although no matter what he says, I will buy my own tickets. No need to make him pay for it.

“Yes!” He’s way too triumphant for someone who barely had to convince me. “Awesome. Anyway, when’s the dorm thingy starting?”

I’m... not sure actually. It’ll probably be on the information sheet my home room teacher gave us. I fish the paper out of my bag. “Monday a few weeks from now.”

“Ah, cool. In commiseration for the event, wanna plan a sleepover? Let’s have fun while we still can!”

“Sure, next weekend at my place sound good?” It’s been a while since we last had a sleepover. This’ll be fun.

“Yeah! I’ll bring popcorn and we can have a movie marathon.” I can hear him smiling again. I am too.

We talk for a while longer, before finally hanging up.

“Good night Shige-kun.”

“Good night Tetsu-chan.”

I hang up on the call. I have homework to finish, but I really don’t feel like doing it right now. I‘m too contented and at peace to want to stress myself out with equations. After getting ready for bed, I sigh and pull it out anyway, resigning myself to it. I’d hate to form bad habits.

Homework done, I put my phone and laptop onto charge, then climbed into bed. The content feeling from the phone call hadn’t quite faded yet, and I found myself slipping off to sleep with a gentle smile on my face. What a day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading :D
> 
> Have a nice day


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Disclaimer: Characters belong to Tadatoshi Fujimaki, I’m just playing with them._
> 
> Thanks to y’all for being so nice! Seriously, you’re all awesome <3
> 
> Enjoy! :D

I yawn as I wake up. The sun peeks through my blinds, illuminating my room with a gentle golden glow. It’s a nice day.

I get ready, still sleepy, and make breakfast and my bento for school. It’s cathartic almost, repetitive motions not needing too much though, a good thing this early.

But soon it’ll be another stressful day, and before that, I have something else to do. Finishing the bento and my breakfast, I wash up and pad to my room.

Blankets are a wonderful thing. Whoever invented them has my commendation. Wrapping them around my shoulders, with my laptop on my lap, I resolve to myself that if I’m really going to do this, I may as well be comfortable.

There’s someone after my blood, and I have to do my best to prevent him from knowing anything about me. If that means hacking into the school records and encrypting my information, then so be it.

It’s kinda funny though. Most people think of hacking as just a nerd tapping furiously at a keyboard, before pushing their glasses up and whispering, “I’m in,” as the light from the screen flashes off their glasses.

Reality check. Most security breaches are the result of passwords being leaked or a inside source defecting.

Interestingly enough, not even most workers are aware of that. Often, if I turn over a keyboard in an office, there’ll be a password taped to it. Same applies to teachers. The ones at my current school are shocking lax about it. There was even a filing cabinet with a bunch of passwords and usernames written down. That was a useful find.

(In my defence, at that point in time I wasn’t _trying_ to break into the school info; I was just getting papers for one of my teachers who’d asked me to. That, however, doesn’t mean I can’t recognise an opportunity when it comes up. I took some photos then did the task.)

Luckily for me, the passwords still worked. I signed in as the highest ranking one, the secretary. Since they often have to change details quickly, they have really high clearance in the system.

My profile flashes onto the screen. Wow. I look so _young_. Is this what everyone sees when they search me up?

I click the picture to edit it. A brown tone for the hair will make it less distinctive. There. That’ll be enough to throw silver-haired guy off if by some miracle he does find my profile. It was pretty dark. Plus it could be seen as just a bad photo if compared to me in real life.

Other than that, I don’t change much, just moving the location of the file to one of the old archives of students. That way, I won’t come up in a casual search, since only current students come up. And the folder name is similar enough that it would come off as a mistake if anyone noticed me missing.

I’ll still be on the roll and everything, and I won’t change anything about my enrolment or existence in the principal’s records. If I did that, who knows what unintended consequences there would be. This way, no student would be able to find me through a simple search in the system, but I’d still be in the records, and since the principal takes care of assigning students to classes each year, everything else would be fine.

I breathe out sharply and stretch my arms above my head. Only ten minutes have passed, I have plenty of time. I go to the secretary’s account and erase all the metadata from today. It’s important I leave no trace.

Logging out, I close the tab and my computer and just sit for a little while. Well. That’s done.

—————————————

The school days pass by quickly. Each day, I’m careful to keep myself unnoticed, lying even lower than usual.

A couple of times, I do see the silver haired guy around, talking to random people. Irritatingly enough, he still hadn’t given up on finding me. Was one win really such a big deal?

Still, he’s had no success, and honestly? The most irritating part of being stalked (sorta) is that he’s always at the cafeteria when I try to go there. As such, I’ve only had one vanilla milkshake in this entire week, and it’s fourth period on Friday. And I bought it outside of school. With money. I want to spend the credit I got from beating him, but I can’t, since he’s always there. I’ll check again today though. Faint hope is worth clinging to.

Class ends in three minutes, and then it’s lunchtime. Great.

The sunlight from the window is shining in my eyes. I can count at least ten people in this classroom who are just sitting there. Four people on their phones (not even bothering to hide them). Two people who are just straight up asleep. Literally just sleeping. Wow. That’s... kinda impressive actually. They’re making it look very natural. I’d barely be able to tell if I wasn’t watching the class so closely.

The bell rings loudly, and there’s a mad dash to get out of the classroom. Thankfully, I’m not in it. I can’t imagine how many bruises I’d get from the people who wouldn’t notice me. Ugh.

Once it’s all died down, I slip out of the classroom and head to the cafeteria. 

To my surprise, I don’t see any flashes of silver in the crowd today. Maybe he had something else to do today. I don’t let my guard down though, slipping through the crowd with caution.

I don’t encounter him in the crush at all though. Maybe he really isn’t here.

The cafeteria lady (named Kinomi) serves people as they go by. I wait until the rush has mostly died down before approaching the counter. Her eyes alight on me.

“Kuroko! It’s been over a week since you last came, have you been sick? Are you okay?” Normally I’m here around twice a week, so to have not come in for so long really was a cause for concern. At least I had one milkshake this week, even if not from school.

I shake my head a little, “No, I just wasn’t able to make it here. I was quite busy.” Busy avoiding that guy, but she probably doesn’t want to hear about how I accidentally gained a stalker.

We chat a little as she fills up a shake for me. When she’s done, I give thanks and farewell and head over to the counter to pay.

The self-checkout machine isn’t currently being used, luckily, so I enter the milkshake and then sign in to my school account to pay. 

At which point, I realised something which probably should’ve been obvious.

In this school’s system, one credit has the same buying power as one yen. Milkshakes cost five hundred yen, so five hundred credit. Pretty cheap, all things considered.

If a person wins a match, the default reward is half of the account balance of the other person (terms can be negotiated, though). Most people at this school have an average balance of around six thousand, excluding of course, the elite. I’d had three thousand before, so was expecting that number to have increased to six thousand.

Decidedly, it had _not_.

Instead of a four digit number, I got seven digits.

Seven. Digits.

 _Seven_.

I can’t even imagine the sheer quantity of milkshakes that would buy. That’d be like... ten thousand milkshakes. That’s... a lot. Holy hell.

After a moment of just staring at the screen in shock, my brain resumed functioning, and the puzzle pieces began to click into place.

No wonder he made such a big deal over my win. If he was elite, he wouldn’t want anyone to know he lost to a nobody like me. And trying to hunt me down? Revenge for losing half his fortune, maybe.

The final puzzle piece clicks into place, and I experience a sudden urge to bang my head against the screen. Did the person I played really _have_ to be Haizaki Shōgo, only the most notorious member of the seven most elite student gamblers?

The guy is on the outskirts of the group, but still very much a part. He earned it by crushing everyone in his way, copying their style of play and making it different. He’d throw them off their pattern and strike when their ability to make decisions was clouded by fear and shock.

And now an utter _nobody_ has beaten him, and he’s out for blood. My blood.

Oh _no_. This goes directly opposite to my plan to stay low for the entirety of my high school career. How can I avoid him when he’s an elite? They _rule_ the school.

What have I got myself into?

—————————————

The remaining two periods seem to race by as I avoid the thought of Haizaki with all my might, and before I know it, Friday is gone and it’s the weekend, and time for my sleepover with Shigehiro. I’ve been looking forwards to it all week. My current situation is stressing me out, so a break will be nice.

I’m setting up a pillow fort for the movie marathon when the doorbell rings. Placing the cushion I’m holding down on the couch, I head to answer it.

Opening the door, I’m greeted by Shige-kun’s smiling face. For approximately three seconds. Before he launches himself at me and engulfs me in a crushing hug.

It’s nice to be hugged, despite the fact that it is indeed a remarkably tight hug. It feels like so long since I last saw him, even though it’s probably only been a couple of weeks at most. I hug back, even though by now my lungs are protesting for air. It’s nice.

Eventually we separate, Shige-kun holding me out at arms length and bouncing on the balls of his feet, a bright smile on his face. “Tetsu-chan! I missed you!”

Even after knowing him for as long as I have, I’m still not sure how to respond to his genuine happiness at seeing me. So I just smile a little, “You can come inside, you know.“

He grins again, and I move out of the doorway to let him in. The door thuds as it shuts, and the only sound in my apartment is the fridge humming and various electrical appliances buzzing with power. Well, only until he begins talking again (still with such a happy smile), grabbing my hand and pulling me with him to the living room. I go without resistance. He dumps his bag next to the half-competed fort, then springs back up to help me finish it (all the while still talking).

I probably know more about Shigehiro’s classmates than I do my own, to be honest. I’m not complaining, he has a way of making whatever he’s saying sounds interesting, even if it’s just the latest gossip about who was caught by the teachers when they snuck out of class to visit the convenience store.

(It was two of the people in his math class. They used the excuse of going to the bathroom to get out of class, then walked to the store a few blocks away. According to Shigehiro, the only reason they got caught was because there was a teacher at the store too, on her break, and she saw them and reported them. It sounded like a very... _interesting_ experience for all three.)

By the time we’re done, I’m fully updated on all the going-ons. Shige-kun brought snacks. And our fort looks amazing. This is going to be awesome.

“So, Tetsu-chan! What do you have planned? I brought melon-pan and a bunch of other snacks.” Shige-kun finishes fluffing up one of the pillows and turns to grin at me.

I hum. “Nice. Anyway, I was thinking of catching up on some of the Marvel movies. I haven’t watched that many, so we have plenty to choose from.”

“Cool! Sounds good to me. I’ve watched most of them, but I definitely wouldn’t mind watching them again. Especially if it’s with you.” He winks at me before crouching to pull my laptop from underneath the couch, then flopping down to browse the selection. I join him.

Eventually we decide on a few movies. “Those should be good, right? Dr Strange, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Ant-Man and the Wasp. You haven’t seen them, have you?”

“No, I haven’t. Hopefully they’re good.”

Well, I’m with Shigehiro. I don’t know if it’s even possible to be bored when in his presence. I’m looking forward to this.

—————————————

The movies are pretty good, but honestly, it’s more fun making snarky comments on the movie with Shige-kun then it is actually watching it. Not that that’s any surprise.

Every so often, one of us will whisper something to the other, setting off irrational giggles. I don’t know why literally anything we’re saying is funny, but somehow it is.

“Tetsu-chan, I’m a guardian too. Guardian of the melon!” His voice is shaky with repressed laughter. When I look over, he’s cradling one of the melon-pan to his chest like a very tiny baby. A bread baby. Bread is god.

He lifts it to his face and plants an exaggerated kiss on it. “My precious, I’ll protect you forever, and cherish you...” His voice trails off into helpless giggles as he loses himself to the hilarity, his shoulders shaking.

I’m laughing so much that it’s hard to breathe through it, barely making a sound anymore. Next to me, I can hear Shigehiro wheezing now. I bet he has a silly smile on his face right now, just like I do.

Eventually we calm down a little, still breaking into breathless giggles as we try to keep a straight face. My face hurts from smiling, but I don’t mind at all. It’s fun.

—————————————

Later, as the credits of the third movie begin rolling, I become aware of a warm weight against me.

Somehow, over the course of the marathon, Shige-kun and I end up cuddled together. I’m not sure exactly how, but he sure does make for a comfortable pillow. He’s so warm, I really don’t want to move.

I can feel myself drifting off to sleep. I don’t try to fight it, letting the darkness consume my vision.

—————————————

My eyes are closed and I feel warmth on my face. It’s hot, probably from the sun.

Wait, the sun?

With superhuman effort, I raise my head a little and crack open one eyelid. Only to be rewarded with temporary blindness. Just an occupational hazard of looking directly at the sun. No big deal.

I can’t feel my legs, but my head is currently resting against a warm pillow. A breathing pillow. A very alive pillow.

Ah. I must have fallen asleep in our fort last night, with Shige-kun. I don’t really want to get up, but he’ll be hungry when he wakes, so I should probably make breakfast.

I move to get up, upon which I encounter another problem. Shige-kun’s arms are wrapped tightly around me, leaving me practically no room to move. It’s probably a sign from the universe that I shouldn’t bother to get up yet. And I am very warm and comfortable. Screw it. Breakfast can wait.

—————————————

Later, at a more respectable hour, breakfast finally gets made. Salmon and rice with noritama seasoning.

When Shige-kun gets rice on him for the nth time, I don’t even bother to scold him, merely flicking the grain off his face without comment.

“Haha, thanks Tetsu-chan!” He grins, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. “I know I’m still a messy eater. Sorry.”

If it’s a little endearing, well. He doesn’t need to know.

When it’s finally time for him to go, we’ve managed to make our way through a couple more movies.

“I’ll walk you to the train station if you’d like.” The credits are rolling for the movie, and it’s late enough that Shige-kun should probably be getting home.

“Really? That’d be great! I’m... not too sure of the way, haha.” His smile brightens, “Plus, I wanna spend all the time I can with you!”

“Mmm. I’ll show you where it is, I know the route by heart.” I can’t stop myself from smiling back at him.

The walk to the station is mostly quiet, just exchanging words about inane subjects and philosophical talk. He makes a point to remind me about his drama thingy, which now has a concrete date. I make a mental note to add it to the calendar.

Before I know it, we’re at the station and the train is whistling on the tracks. I step forward to hug him goodbye, “See you. Tell your parents and little brothers hi for me, ok?”

“Yup, will do! See ya!” He waves enthusiastically, almost hitting a tall person in the face. I muffle a laugh into a cough as he hurriedly apologises. Thankfully, they’re chill with it.

I raise my hand high as the train pulls out of the station. I can see him inside the train, waving back. Until I can’t, and the train is gone.

Walking back home feels like waking from a dream. All the excitement that was the last two days seems to have dissipated a little, leaving with Shige-kun.

Still, I’m feeling less stressed than I have been in weeks. And I had a lot of fun. Life is good.

Later, as I eat dinner, I notice something sitting innocently on the counter, a note. There’s writing on it, saying, “~That was fun, Tetsu-chan. Let’s do it again when you have the time!~ <3”

I huff, one corner of my mouth turning up. He’s so ridiculous. But it still made me smile, so I guess he’s the real winner here.

—————————————

In homeroom on Monday, the teacher announces that the sign up sheets for the dorms (both for the chosen partners and for the random selection) have been put up. Apparently, they’re in reception, near the administration office.

There’ll probably be too many students swarming around the sheets to be able to sign up at recess or lunch, so I figure it’s probably best to wait for the end of the day. Less time to wait in line, less people to push past.

The day flies by, with me maintaining my efforts to lay low. Thankfully, by the end of the day, I haven’t seen hide nor hair of Haizaki, so it seems to be working, luckily enough. Still, can’t let my guard down.

When I arrive at reception after the end of school, there aren’t many people there. Only a few other people who (like me) decided to play the waiting game.

I go in and add my name and school-assigned email to the list, after checking twice to ensure I got the right one. Well, here’s to getting a good roommate.

“But it’s not fair! I want my own room too!” A loud voice enters the room. Glancing over my shoulder, it belongs to a tall (why is everyone so _tall_ ) guy with short-cropped dark blue hair. He’s pretty tanned, must spend a lot of time outside. Actually, now that I look closer, he probably plays basketball. I’ve seen him around a few times near the gyms, and his muscles look like he plays regularly.

With him, there are a few others (four total). They look... very tall.

Especially the purple haired one; I recognise him. I’ve used him before as a shelter, to hide behind and protect me from sharp elbows and crushing crowds. He’s remarkably useful as a human shield.

“Yeah!! Why does Akashi get his own room but not us?” The blond guy whines, pouting exaggeratedly at the others.

“Then complain to Akashi, instead of whining about it to us. It’s not like I’m thrilled about living with you either, nanodayo.” The green haired guy stiffly pushes his glasses up his nose with his bandaged fingers, and frowns at the blond.

The purple haired one hasn’t said anything yet, too busy chowing down on a pack of chips. They’re probably here to sign up too, I should leave before they notice me (slim as the chances of that might be).

“Ehhh, Midorimacchi! So mean. Why wouldn’t you want to room with me?” Blond guy again. I slip past them, nearly reaching the door before my brain processes what I just heard.

That name... sounds familiar. I turn slightly, looking at them all again. Green hair, purple hair, yellow hair, dark blue hair. Ah. That’s. That’s the elite.

Four of the other people in the main seven. Midorima Shintarō, Murasakibara Atsushi, Kise Ryōta, Aomine Daiki. Great. It’d be... really not great if they saw me. Even if Haizaki is somewhat estranged from the group (and likely too prideful to ask for help), it’s still a possibility. And one which I would very much like to avoid. Please and thank you.

I leave quietly, ensuring the door shuts softly and my footsteps are inaudible.

I knew the names of the elite, and had heard them described, but I had never bothered to connect the names to the faces before. A thing which may have cost me my anonymity, since I never would have accepted Haizaki’s challenge had I known who he was. Nor would I have hid behind the tall purple haired one (Murasakibara, as I now know him to be). Well. Nothing to do about it now, I guess.

I pass through the school gates. The walk home is peaceful, and thankfully, no more surprises await me as I head home and do all the stuff I need to. Honestly, homework sucks. Why do teachers always feel the need to set so much? They’re the ones marking it.

When I’m done, I’m exhausted. Right now, all I want to do is sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> Hope u enjoyed :DD


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